Restoring Highlight Details

HarrybHarryb Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 22,708 Major grins
edited April 4, 2012 in Wildlife
Hi Y'all,

Just a short post on highlight details. Most wildlife photographers will run into problems with blown highlights and/or the loss of highlight details.

Here's a recent osprey capture


i-8Ggv8k6-XL.jpg

The highlights of the image out of the camera weren't completely blown they ranged in the high 240's.Using Recovery in ACR at a strength of 60 I lowered the values to the low 220's but I wasn't happy with the lack of details in the highlights.

I then tried the Detail Extractor filter in Nik's Photo Efex. I applied it to the highlights with the brush tool with the details slider set to 60 with the following result

i-SdPB2bx-XL.jpg


Thank you Nik
Harry
http://behret.smugmug.com/ NANPA member
How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb? 50. One to change the bulb, and forty-nine to say, "I could have done that better!"

Comments

  • Dick on ArubaDick on Aruba Registered Users Posts: 3,484 Major grins
    edited March 30, 2012
    That really did make a difference Harry.
    The "before" pic was "alright" in my eyes already. Great filter, great results!
    "Nothing sharpens sight like envy."
    Thomas Fuller.

    SmugMug account.
    Website.
  • AFBlueAFBlue Registered Users Posts: 135 Major grins
    edited March 31, 2012
    Harryb wrote: »
    Hi Y'all,

    Just a short post on highlight details. Most wildlife photographers will run into problems with blown highlights and/or the loss of highlight details. [snip]


    The highlights of the image out of the camera weren't completely blown they ranged in the high 240's.Using Recovery in ACR at a strength of 60 I lowered the values to the low 220's but I wasn't happy with the lack of details in the highlights.

    I then tried the Detail Extractor filter in Nik's Photo Efex. I applied it to the highlights with the brush tool and the deatils slider set to 60 . . . .

    Thank you Nik

    Wonder how well the new Highlight slider in Adobe ACR in CS6 and/or the use of the new adjustment bush in ACR would have handled this.

    Do you by chance have the CS6 public beta for a comparison?

    Jerry
    http://beautyofnaturephotography.com
  • PGMPGM Registered Users Posts: 2,007 Major grins
    edited March 31, 2012
    Harry, I bought both Nik's Photo Efex and Viveza programs after I heard you mention them, and I like them both a lot. I think that Detail Extractor works better than anything else on blown highlights, which is important to me since we have so many white birds. Many thanks, Pam
  • HarrybHarryb Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 22,708 Major grins
    edited March 31, 2012
    Dick on Aruba wrote: »
    That really did make a difference Harry.
    The "before" pic was "alright" in my eyes already. Great filter, great results!

    Thanks Dick, The first capture did look alright but I have found that with a little bit of effort many captures can go past that "alright" level.
    Harry
    http://behret.smugmug.com/ NANPA member
    How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb? 50. One to change the bulb, and forty-nine to say, "I could have done that better!"
  • jwearjwear Registered Users Posts: 8,013 Major grins
    edited March 31, 2012
    Thats a good one Harry lose of detail due to blow out :cry To easy to do and too hard to redue I may givethis a try
    Jeff W

    “PHOTOGRAPHY IS THE ‘JAZZ’ FOR THE EYES…”

    http://jwear.smugmug.com/
  • HarrybHarryb Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 22,708 Major grins
    edited April 1, 2012
    AFBlue wrote: »
    Wonder how well the new Highlight slider in Adobe ACR in CS6 and/or the use of the new adjustment bush in ACR would have handled this.

    Do you by chance have the CS6 public beta for a comparison?

    Jerry

    Not yet Jerry so I won't be able to do a comparison at this time. It would be great if it could match Nik's Detail Extractor but I wouldn't bet on it.
    Harry
    http://behret.smugmug.com/ NANPA member
    How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb? 50. One to change the bulb, and forty-nine to say, "I could have done that better!"
  • HarrybHarryb Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 22,708 Major grins
    edited April 4, 2012
    jwear wrote: »
    Thats a good one Harry lose of detail due to blow out :cry To easy to do and too hard to redue I may givethis a try

    I think the Nik plug-ins are an excellent investment.
    Harry
    http://behret.smugmug.com/ NANPA member
    How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb? 50. One to change the bulb, and forty-nine to say, "I could have done that better!"
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